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With Pride around the corner, Saturday being the parade, all sorts of parties and events are being unveiled around the capital. Well Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, has announced five new Pride-inspired plaques. They will be dotted around the city, celebrating notable people, places and events within LGBTQ+ history.
Funding was received from the Mayors’ Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm and Wandsworth Oasis. These are teams who take part in commemorating and identifying hidden LGBTQ+ heritage. The support was requested by the London LGBT+ Forums’ Network and Studio Voltaire.
The rainbow plaques are as follows:
- Beautiful Thing in Greenwich. This is a celebration of the 1996 coming-of-age film, which covers a coming out story. The July 23 unveiling will be accompanied by the movie screening at Greenwich picture house
- Black Lesbian and Gay Centre in Peckham. This was the first centre in Europe that supported this specific community
- Jackie Forster in Westminster. She was an extremely influential journalist and activist who helped found Sappho, the LGBTQ+ social group
- London Lighthouse in Ladbroke Grove. This is a centre for HIV and AIDS patience and they offer support for people disregarded after their diagnosis
- Section 28 in Haringey. This was a 1988 section that forbade councils from ‘intentionally promoting homosexuality’. It was repealed in 2003 but the site has been the location for many protests. The Council has since placed a Lesbian and Gay unit to show support to the community
They will all be introduced next month so keep your eyes peeled when walking around London there are new plaques in town.